Genuine experience

Before leaving to study abroad, I was experiencing burnout. What I mean by this was that I began losing motivation for school and activities and stopped paying attention to my mental health. It got to a point where I felt tired all day and was no longer myself. I contacted counseling services when I knew this wasn't getting any better. I was nervous that I would experience these emotions while abroad, so I worked with my counselor to create goals for myself in hopes of not allowing my current state to get in the way. Some of my goals consisted of being comfortable with uncomfortable, trying new foods, being open-minded, and not allowing financial reasons to get in the way of what I hoped to do. Luckily studying abroad was an experience that positively changed my life—studying abroad allowed me the opportunity to be stress-free. Every day I woke up ready to experience the unexpected. Experiencing the unexpected has had a significant impact during my experience, and even today. I was finally opening up to trying different foods I knew I would not be open to back at home. For instance, I was not too fond of burgers and refused to try them back at home, although, while in Alicante, I was surrounded by burger restaurants and people who loved burgers. Therefore, I decided to have my first burger in Spain, and since then, I have come to terms that burgers are not as bad as I thought they would be! I was also able to make friends with students of the university. It was a great experience being able to learn their perspective of their country while I was also able to teach them my perspective of my life in the states. Having met them was very helpful. For example, I previously did not know anything about bullfighting and debated whether to attend the event. With their feedback, I decided not to participate because I realized it would be a traumatic experience for me. I also got out of my comfort zone to meet other students from Italy and Japan who were temporarily studying at the same university. We were able to exchange numbers, and we hope to see each other again in the future! Before this trip, I knew swimming was not my forte because I didn't know enough to swim deeper than 5ft. Within the program, we took multiple trips to the ocean, although the specific trip that stood out was where I went on a catamaran. I was hesitant about whether I should get in the water since I didn't know whether I could swim. I had supportive friends who all encouraged me to get in, and if anything, they would help me get back on the boat. IT TURNS OUT THAT I CAN SWIM, and the best part is that I found out I could swim while in Spain! This was an amazing experience I will never forget. I felt butterflies in my stomach when I realized I could swim, and I still feel the same excitement today. I was finally pushing myself to participate in activities I had always hoped to do. I have always wanted to read books for fun and journal. I bought a journal and book before I left abroad, not knowing whether I would actually use them. I met girls from USAC who loved to read and journal. Participating in these conversations with these girls helped motivate me to begin my book. I finished my first book in Spain, and since returning home, I have already completed two other books and plan on continuing to journal. As you can see, I have accomplished multiple goals that I could write a whole book. Words cannot explain how thankful I am for this experience because I feel the happiest I have ever been.